For almost 50 years, the High Line railroad served as a means of commercial transportation and carried commercial goods through the city. Eventually, in 1980, the final trip along the railway was made and it was since abandoned. Parts of the railroad were demolished, other parts completely torn down. Unkempt species grew as humans had little interaction with the High Line. What was once a main vein of transit in New York City had become an unsightly feature that negatively affected surrounding property values. Luckily, some saw this as an opportunity to integrate nature into a highly urbanized area. What resulted was a citified garden with “a multiplicity of everchanging habitats” (Stalter 390).
Unfortunately, the day I visited the High Line was a bit gloomy and windy; many of the area’s pollinators had probably scurried away in search of shelter. I was only able to capture a few bumblebees hovering around flowers and low-lying plant communities. On a previous visit during mid-August, however, I saw a much more diverse community of species ranging from bugs of all sorts to a monarch butterfly. As Stalter states in his study, humans may have also played an inadvertent role in pollinating the High Line by transporting seeds while walking. I thought about this as I looked around at the flora around me. It is quite ironic that something so industrial it was once labeled “Death Row” could become something rich with life. In fact, Stalter states “the High Line may have one of the highest levels of species richness of any temperate zone urban environment in the region” (Stalter 389). Variables that would seemingly negatively affect species gave way to such diversified organisms.
In the midst of one of the most urban areas in the world, a lovely elevated “park” exists. A rambunctious garden, perhaps? I would say so. When the High Line was built in the 1930s, no one could have guessed what it would end up becoming. Over time, the High Line adapted to the changing environment around it and luckily, the Friends of the High Line saw this as an opportunity to preserve the diverse nature that had emerged. In fact, I went to a community board meeting the same day and one of the topics of discussion pertained to a new housing plan that suggested erecting three new apartment buildings around the High Line. Rather than tear down a part of this urban garden, the building plan intended to integrate it into the project.
While the High Line differs from what most people believe to be conventional greenery, it was nice to see that the elevated park did not have to be pristine or seem like a whole other world for it to be rich with nature. In the midst of tall, futuristic apartment buildings and car horns, the High Line provides an escape from boisterous society for the humans that dotted its large patches of grass.
